New Company to Develop Broad Pipeline of Products for Major Infectious Diseases
GAITHERSBURG, Md., June 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Panacos Pharmaceuticals Inc. today announced that it has entered into a definitive merger agreement with V.I. Technologies, Inc. ("Vitex"). Vitex is a public (NASDAQ) company, based in Watertown, MA that is developing innovative anti-infective technologies to enhance blood safety. The merged company will have a strong pipeline of products for serious infectious diseases. These include Vitex's INACTINE(TM) technology, currently in Phase 3 clinical testing for the inactivation of pathogens in red blood cells, and Panacos' pipeline of novel therapeutic small-molecule antiviral drugs that includes PA-457, the first-in-class HIV maturation inhibitor which is currently in Phase 1 clinical testing.
Samuel K. Ackerman, MD, currently Chairman of Vitex and Chairman and Acting CEO of Panacos, will be Chairman and CEO of the combined Company which will use the V.I. Technologies and Vitex names. "Combining the technology platforms of Vitex and Panacos will create a dynamic new anti-infectives company developing innovative pharmaceutical products addressing major global healthcare problems," commented Dr. Ackerman. "Clinical-stage products in the combined company will initially address markets exceeding $8 billion and have strong competitive and intellectual property positions. The management team is broad and experienced."
Vitex is developing products to improve the safety of the world's blood supply. Its proprietary INACTINE(TM) technology inactivates a wide range of viruses, bacteria and parasites, and has demonstrated its ability to remove prion proteins. With over 40 million red cell units transfused annually in the U.S., Europe and Japan, INACTINE(TM) addresses a major market opportunity
Panacos is developing antiviral drugs with novel mechanisms of action. The Company's lead compound, PA-457, is the first in a new class of oral HIV drugs that block viral maturation, a drug target discovered by Panacos scientists. PA-457 has equal activity against HIV strains that are sensitive or resistant to existing drugs, thereby addressing drug resistance, the principal problem in HIV therapy today. Panacos initiated the first human clinical trial of PA-457 in March, 2004 and recently announced its completion. Following single dose oral administration to uninfected, healthy volunteers, PA-457 was well tolerated and exhibited favorable oral bioavailability and pharmacokinetics. Based on these promising results, Panacos has advanced the compound into a multiple dose Phase 1 study to determine the safety and pharmacokinetics of PA-457 when administered orally to volunteers once daily for 10 days. Panacos will present a detailed review of the PA-457 development program at the July, 2004 XV International AIDS Conference in Bangkok, Thailand.
Graham P. Allaway, Ph.D., Chief Operating Officer and co-founder of Panacos will continue to have responsibility for the Panacos programs in the combined company. Dr. Allaway said: "We look forward to working with the Vitex team to expedite development of the combined company's strong product portfolio, including the achievement of important near term clinical milestones for PA-457 such as initiation of a proof-of-concept Phase 2 clinical trial of PA-457 in HIV infected subjects later this year."
Under the terms of the transaction, Vitex will issue 25 million common shares in exchange for all outstanding Panacos shares upon the close of the transaction. Vitex will issue up to an additional 20 million common shares to Panacos shareholders upon the successful completion of near-term clinical milestones for PA-457. The transaction is expected to close in Q3, 2004 and is subject to SEC review and shareholder approval of both companies.
Panacos has successfully raised over $26 million in two rounds of private equity funding since its inception in 2000. Panacos investors include Ampersand Ventures, A.M. Pappas & Co., Mitsui & Co. Venture Partners, Inc., Novo A/S, Lakeview Capital Management, William Harris Investors, New England Partners, and the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development.
Vitex will host a live webcast with a slide presentation and conference call today at 10.00 AM Eastern time to discuss the transaction. The webcast may be accessed via the home page of Vitex's web site at http://www.vitechnologies.com. A replay of the webcast will be available via a link from Vitex's web site immediately after completion of the call, and will be archived for on-demand replay for 60 days. The conference call may be accessed by dialing 800-795-1259 for domestic callers, and 785-832-2422 for international callers. A replay of the conference call will be archived for 60 days and may be accessed by dialing 888-274-8332 for domestic callers and 402-220-2325 for international callers.
About Panacos: Panacos Pharmaceuticals is engaged in the discovery and development of small molecule oral drugs for the treatment of HIV and other major human viral diseases. Panacos' proprietary discovery technologies focus on novel targets in the virus life cycle, including virus fusion and virus maturation, the first and last steps of viral infection.
For more information on Panacos Pharmaceuticals, please visit http://www.panacos.com, or email: info@panacos.com.
SOURCE Panacos Pharmaceuticals Inc.
